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Month: March 2018

Pussy Willow (Salix discolor)

Pussy Willow (Salix discolor)

If today’s warm, sunny weather doesn’t convince you that spring is finally here, look no further than the emergence of silky pearly grey pussy willow buds – a sure sign of spring. Pussy willows (Salix discolor) are a dioecious species (male and female catkins appearing on separate trees). Although it’s these soft fuzzy grey incipient catkins that most people recognize, only the male trees produce these “cat paw”-like catkins that give the species its common name. Also, even these male…

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Common periwinkle (Littorina littorea)

Common periwinkle (Littorina littorea)

It’s hard to take a trip to a rocky coastline in New England without noticing hundreds of common periwinkles (Littorina littorea). Despite the name “common”, these gastropods are not actually native to New England. They were introduced in the mid-19th century, likely through ballast water in ships from Europe (its native range). Since then, the common periwinkle has become well established in eastern North America and is now the most common marine snail along our coastline. Although most abundant on…

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Animal tracks in winter (3)

Animal tracks in winter (3)

Despite the occurrence of the vernal equinox tomorrow, it’s looking very un-spring-like outside these days – three nor’easters in three weeks and another one forecasted for Wednesday! While I am immensely looking forward to returning ospreys, blooming flowers, and green leaves on the trees, I also appreciate the insight snow can give us into animal presence and behavior. Previous posts have highlighted mammal sign left in fresh snow, including eastern cottontail and mouse tracks, as well as other sign left…

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Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens)

Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens)

Like partridge berry (Mitchella repens), pipsissewa (Chimaphila umbellata), and spotted wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata), wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) is a low-growing, glossy-leaved perennial common to our area. With numerous common names, wintergreen could easily be the poster child for why Latin names are so important. This small red-berried plant is also called teaberry, checkerberry, deerberry and boxberry, among other things. The plant is shade tolerant, but berries are more common on wintergreen plants growing in clearings. Also, although the plant is considered…

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Pitch Pine (Pinus rigida) Immature Cones

Pitch Pine (Pinus rigida) Immature Cones

This past weekend’s nor’easter brought heavy rain and hurricane force winds to Cape Cod, knocking down numerous trees. While downed trees can cause immense damage and disruption if they fall on houses, on power lines or into roads, they can also provide a rarely seen look into the tops of trees. During a walk through the forest on Saturday afternoon after the worst of the storm had passed, I encountered dozens of toppled trees, including this pitch pine (Pinus rigida)….

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